Thursday, August 24, 2017

While JKS is away, perhaps on a well deserved vacation or whatever he's doing, let's not forgot his stellar acting performances. We all know that he's a bit concerned about his role in Human Life wherein he plays less than a heroic character. But JKS' best performances - the ones that have garnered him the most praise - have been those in which he played not only the "bad guy" but a character no one could love. His character in The Case of Itaewon Homicide is a perfect example of his ability to mesmerize an audience by playing a truly evil character.

In Hong Gil Dong, he played a Prince cum King who could equally be characterized as both good and bad. Chang Hwi's primary driving force to gain the throne, which he believed was stolen from him, led him to be hard and often murderous. But a gentle, loving woman and a warrior for he people showed him he could be more than just a vengeful King. Together they taught him to care...but in the end, he murders them to retain his throne.

In this role as Chang Hwi, JKS' extraordinary good looks...which is mentioned by one of characters in the in the dialog of the drama - often conflicts with his character. For the audience, too, the dichotomy arises again and again. How can someone so good looking be bad? Yet, that dichotomy appears to be exactly what the director wanted. Casting JKS in the role of Chang Hwi afforded the director the perfect example of how society can be deceived by appearance. Yet, Change Hwi turns out to be more than good looks. He's a complicated character, torn between wanting to retain the kingdom his fought to gain and the knowledge that what he's gained is far from perfect for the people. In this role, JKS performs magnificently, showing both a hardness as well as a tender, and even understanding, side of his character.

A year later, JKS chose to completely transformed himself as an actor. Gone was the sympatheticcharacter with whom the audience could identify or long to hold.

In The Case of Itaewon Homicide, which JKS did a year after Hong Gil Dong, the director chose JKS not for his looks as part of the cinematographic mix, but rather solely on JKS' acting ability. In this role JKS completely transforms his onscreen appearance while, remarkably, never losing his charisma.

By some reports, JKS begged to take on the role of Robert Pierson, one of the two accused of a vicious, unwarranted murder of an innocent college student. Stories abound that JKS chose to forego - offered to give up - any salary in order to play that role. Regardless, JKS performance in this film won him the Most Popular Actor award At the 46th BaekSang Art Award, in 2010.

So while his ardent fans may still affectionately linger over his later rom-com roles, it's worth noting that in most of his roles, he's played a hardened man transformed by love.

But in The Case of Itaewon Homicide, no such scenario exists. He's an evil man - full stop - who uses the court system to his advantage. JKS' ability to become such an evil character testifies to his remarkable acting skill and ability to transform himself into the character he's portraying.

So, while some of his fans (Eels) may be shocked by his performance as a far less than a heroic character in Human Time, his willingness to accept a less than admirable role is nothing new for him. As an actor, JKS cannot - and should not - be stereotyped. He's a brilliant actor who has the remarkable talent and ability to become any character he chooses to portray. As several of his directors have said, JKS is a natural born actor. So, when Human Time finally releases, we can all expect JKS to be yet another character in his vast repertoireof characters whom he imagines them to be.

Well known actors who played in The Case of Itaewon Homicide:

Jung Jin-Yong played Prosecutor Park - he play the lead character in the film, The Happy Live with JKS.

JKS played Robert Pierson, one of the two accused murderers.

Song Joong Ki, from Descendants of the Sun, played the murder victim, Jo Jong Pi.

Tuesday, August 22, 2017

The Japanese entertainment publication, Kstyle, published a photo layout of JKS' LINE LIVE broadcast. The photos are really beautiful, and one in particular is quite interesting. It shows JKS lying face up on the pavement, holding the video camera. That photo, where he's acting as a director, illustrates the depth of JKS' involvement in every aspect of video and film making.

And finally, JKS cut a promo video for Japan's pay channel, TBS, in which he says TBS will air the full, uncut Rockumentary concert on August 26 and again on August 30. Here's what the channel wrote about the show:

"From Jang Keun Suk’s latest solo live ‘THE CRISHOW ROCKUMENTARY’, we will broadcast the first concert on TV of the the Osaka Hall performance held on July 2 with all the songs uncut. This performance is an impressive live showing towards the future while reproducing the typical state of the past three performances as a culmination of ‘THE CRISHOW’ 1, 2, AND 3, staring from 2011. New songs such as the title song ‘Voyage’ from the new album that Keun Suk wrote for the fans is also unveiled for the first time. The best live performance created together with the strongest entertainer Jang Keun Suk and fans who have been there at the the same time with exclusive pictures from TBS channel 1! Please look forward to it."

Saturday, August 19, 2017

Hello, Everyone. How are you doing, going into this late August weekend?

Well, another week has passed, Jang Keun Suk's Seoul Fan Meetings and Cri-J's Charity Birthday Exhibition grow closer. Just 14 more days! Are you as anxious as we are to read the fan accounts and see the photos as we are?

We hope that the exhibition breaks all previous records for attendance.

Why?

Beause that will mean even more money (Won) that can be donated to the many worthy causes that Cri J - Jang Kuen Suk's first and official Korean fan club - supports to help the poor and needy. So, if you're going to be in Seoul the weekend of Sept 2nd and 3rd, you must attend the exhibition. Remember, every penny raised through your purchase of tickets to the exhibition goes to support those in need. Cri J takes nothing but donates it all!

But let's keep moving onward. Zikzin!

Since Jang Keun Suk's return from Japan, we've not seen anything from him for five days. "What's he doing?", everyone is asking. Well, we don't know.

But what we do know is that he's undoubtedly working on the concept, format, and everything else that will go into the two-day Seoul Fan Meetings to make them the best ever fan meeting for his Korean els whom he dearly loves. As a side note, he rewrote the lyrics for Voyage just for his Korean eels to tell them how much he loves them and how much they mean to him.

Plus, he's still working on his PhD, so there's a lot he has to do to complete that program...most particularly, his PhD thesis project. He said during his most recent in-depth interview in Japan that no matter how busy he is, he always got homework to do. He can't escape it...and often it frustrates him, but he knows he has to do it. Doing a PhD project is unlike any other kind of project or college thesis. It must be original and it must satisfy a board of professors with expertise in the field. For some aspiring film PhD candidates, they've turned out feature length films that went on to be shown in the theaters, sometimes with great appeal and audiences. We're sure JKS seeks nothing less for himself, especially since he sets the bar so high for himself and all he does. There's a reason why he's considered a perfectionist!!!

Jang Keun Suk's PhD has become very important to him...and with good reason. It sets him apart from the average actor or entertainer. That education enables him to understand the industry more fully and to be able to make a deep mark on it when his time comes, which it will. Of that there is no doubt. And for JKS that is important. His "north star" leads directly to his making an impact on the film industry, even as he, like all naturally gifted entertainers, gets a enormous thrill - like an adrenaline rush - out of being on stage in front of a live audience. But no matter how much he loves being on stage in front of live audience, he always comes home to "film", whether as an actor or as a director. Acting and directing, as he's often said, are his first love and he can no longer imagine doing anything else for the rest of his life. Kudos, Actor Jang. With that attitude, he will surely win an Oscar for his mantel and many other awards. We can't wait to see the statues lined up on his mantel!

Time to take a break?

In addition to his Seoul Fan Meetings and his studies and PhD project, JKS hasn't taken a vacation this year as he usually does in the summer. During his three part interview with Japan's Model Press, the most recent in-depth interview he's held, he said he wanted to take a vacation to Hawaii, his favorite summer vacation spot, before the summer was over. So, perhaps he quietly slipped away from Korean and went to Oahu for a few days of peace and sunshine. It wouldn't be the first time.

Nevertheless, all speculation aside, we hope he's enjoying these few days between his hectic activities and finding some quiet time to just "be". Heaven only knows, we all need time alone to just "be" without having to think about what's next...and JKS is no different. As he's often said, he's "just a human being."

Friday, August 18, 2017

Jang Keun Suk's Cri J eels continue their time consuming, lengthy charitable work,including picking up garbage and playing games with the children which Cri J and Jang Keun Suk have unofficially adopted. Thank you, Cri J.You are an example to all of us of what true charity really is.

One of the programs JKS taped while he was in Japan the last time was "Banana Zero Music" in which he participated in a "Drawing Quiz."The program just aired on August 16 at 7:30-8:45 on Japan's NHK Channel. Below are some of excerpts from the show. (Some of these may overlap other clips.) In addition, we have a photos of his drawings beneath the clips.

Monday, August 14, 2017

Jang Keun Suk can be rightfully proud of his new cafe. The cafe getting great reviews from Seoul's cafe critics. And just like the AP Shop is known as JKS' "hideout" in Japan, Cafe PLENO is becoming eels "hideout".

And if eels visiting this week weren't treated enough just by being there, hoping of seeing JKS in person, they received an extra treat when JKS' father showed up with Sunni. Unfortunately, no one captured a photos of his father...just Sunni and Dad's shoes.

A post shared by macarons_jks (@jks_macarons_jks) on Aug 12, 2017 at 1:11am PDT

In addition, a cafe critic went to Cafe Pleno to check it out 😅😄
Google translation of the review:
My favorite cafe.
There is a parking,
Wi-Fi and laptop,
easy to connect power lines,
delicious desserts,
coffee flavor, and
two hours of comfort
.
Café Preno satisfies all of these, so I have to
go often.

Another promotional spot for Voyage JKS made while in Japan. This one is for Momochihama DX. He says that he spent a year thinking about and working on the album. As a result, he thinks some of the songs on this album may be nicer than his previous album. He also raises the possibility of doing a national Japan tour. He says he wants to go back to Fukouka, not only for his fans there but also for the ramen from his favorite ramen shop. And he'd like to go to places in Japan he's never been before so he can get closer to his fans.

Saturday, August 12, 2017

Just when we thought we'd seen all of JKS' Suddenly LINE LIVE LEZ GO event videos, LINE released this one. Yeah, he's still on his pub crawl. Actually, it's a compilation of the previous two LEZ GO videos already aired plus a third segment.

After Jang Keun Suk's very busy week in Japan, he returned to Korea on August 10. He told Model Press, part 3, that he when he's in Korea he works out doing boxing and pilates, until he builds up a heavy sweat to control his weight. If those thighs are result of boxing and pilates...Wow, we should all take up those activities!!!!